Home & Garden March 15, 2013

Growing, using herbs topic of Kelly’s talkThe Union County Master Gardeners’ next meeting will be Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. in the Ladies Building at the fairgrounds.
Guest speaker will be Lelia Kelly, professor of horticulture for Mississippi State University Extension, who will give a presentation on growing and using herbs.
The public is invited to attend.

Lunch and Learn offers tips on growing azaleas“The Amazing World of Azaleas” is the topic of the Lunch and Learn on Thursday at noon at the Lee County Supervisors’ Boardroom (former CDF building) at 300 W. Main St. in downtown Tupelo.
Mississippi State University Extension Area Agent Wayne Porter will share tips on proper selection and care that will provide blooms from early spring until the first frost.
Call (662) 841-9000 to sign-up for this interactive video class.

Book suggests nature decorating tipsNature meets home decor in Shane Powers’ “Bring the Outdoors In: Garden Projects for Decorating and Styling Your Home.”
In the book, stylist and designer Powers shares 22 projects for bringing nature into the home using live or dried plant materials. Among them are a flowering branch wall sconce and prints made from mushroom caps .
Some of the projects involve making unusual containers or arrangements, such as an indoor water garden and a planter covered with sea-glass crystals.
“Bring the Outdoors In” is published by Chronicle Books and sells for $24.95 in hardcover.

Q&A: Who can replace a change purse zipper? Q: I have a small leather change purse that was given to me when I was a little girl by my aunt. It even has my name engraved into the leather! Well, the zipper on it is broken. The zipper is only about 3 inches long. I have taken it to shoe repair/cobbler shops, and they could not help me. I know years ago my mother used to take stuff to the zipper hospital (that’s what she called it). Do you know of any place where I can get this fixed? – Brita Fox, Doylestown, Pa.
A: I haven’t been able to find anyone locally who can replace the zipper, but I did find one place online. It’s called – are you ready for this? – the Zipper Hospital.
It’s in Brookline, Mass., and its website is www.zipperhospital.com. The owner said you can correspond by phone or email to discuss the job.
Small zippers are difficult to replace on leather goods, so it might be expensive. But because the change purse has sentimental value, I suspect it may be worth the cost to you.